1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of fence construction and is particularly directed toward specific construction of tension bars used in chain link type fences.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Heretofore, tension bar construction was simply a straight bar of steel which was rectangular shaped in transverse cross section. One particular problem involving the prior steel tension bar construction is that it can shift about a vertical axis thus presenting its weaker orientation to the tensional forces being applied to the fabric. Thus, the bar is easily bent or curved along its weaker dimension resulting in loose fabric.
With the shortage of steel in recent years, an attempt to substitute plastic or fiberglass in the construction of these tension bars met with a degree of success but certain problems immediately came to the foreground. One of these problems stems from the fact that the design of the tension band or clamps is not such that the correct position or orientation of the bar can be guaranteed especially in light of numerous persons who serve as installers where quality installation is not always in order. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that steel tension bars will sometimes bend, but the nature of this material is that it forgives a lot of poor installation errors. On the other hand, poor installation of a fiberglass bar is not forgiving. Accordingly, the prior fiberglass tension bars frequently were broken since the fiberglass bars are unidirectional and require that these bars be placed in a particular position or orientation where the directional strength is at its maximum.